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This is Part 2 in a series on The SONSHIP Message that is hidden in the Holy Bible!

What Really Happened In the Garden of Eden

Why am I here? What is life all about? Why did God create me? What will happen to me after I die? Was I born to die or is there more to life than that? Did God have two plans- a Plan A when creating Adam and Eve, and then a Plan B when they sinned while in the Garden?

NO! God who knows the end from the beginning had only One Plan. He never makes a mistake and always has everything under control. From the beginning of time God had only one plan for man! From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is only a 7000-year account of God’s dealing with mankind; 6000 years have nearly passed and the 1000 year-reign of Jesus Christ will soon begin. For an Eternal God, 7000 years is a just a blink of an eye. There is much more God has for us, but are not revealed in the Holy Bible. They deal withEternity! So what is ‘the eternal purpose which God purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord’Ep3:11?Paul wrote‘.. God hath chosen us in Jesus Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love; Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself (SONSHIP), according to the good pleasure of his will’ Ep1:4,5.

God knew and chose us in Jesus Christ before the world began, to be a holy people, long before we knew and accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Before our parents met, before Adam and Eve were created, and before the world began, God chose us to be His holy children, according to the good pleasure of His will. 2Ti1:9 states God ‘..hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling.. according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began’. God had predestinated everything, and His purpose and good pleasure are intertwined in all His creation. But how do we know that we are included in this chosen group? To be in this group, we must be in Christ, living a holy and blameless life before God in love. Otherwise, we are not. We will now discuss God’s sovereignty and what is His good pleasure toward us.

God’s Sovereignty and His Good Pleasure

God is Sovereign and Almighty. He does whatever He wants. He chooses whomever He pleases ‘..according to his good pleasure which he purposed in himself’ Ep1:9. To illustrate God’s sovereignty, as Creator we had no choice to be born: no choice of our parents, our gender, male or female, our ethnicity or nationality- yellow, brown, red, black or white, or the country we were born in e.g. Africa, China, or the USA. Also, we had no choice of when in time and history we would be living. Would you have liked to have live in Noah’s days, during the great flood when all died except for 8 people, or in the days of Moses, wandering aimlessly in the desert for 40 years until many people died off? It was a Sovereign God who put us into this world, chose our parents, gender, ethnicity, nationality, and when in time we would be living. God chose you and I to be living today.

Why is this so special? God chose us to be living in these last days such that one day soon, some of us will see Jesus and be taken alive to heaven in the Rapture 1Th4:17. John wrote ‘when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is’ 1Jn3:2. Jesus said ‘Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God’ Mt5:8. We are living in a very special time when Jesus will return to take us to heaven with Him Jn14:3. Because of His sovereignty and great love, God worked out His great plan and purpose for us! To learn God’s eternal purpose in Christ Jesus- why He created us, and what He wants to achieve in us, we must first examineWHAT REALLY HAPPENED IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN!

In the Garden of Eden

Ge1:1 states that God created the heaven and the earth. God put all the trees and animals on the earth and Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Every tree God planted was pleasant to sight and good for food Ge2:9. God also allowed the serpent to be in the garden. Re12:9 tells that the old serpent is the Devil or Satan. How did the tree of knowledge of good and evil (the forbidden tree) get in the garden? Since it was an evil tree, God did not plant it; perhaps Satan did! Mt13:25,39 states the devil is the sower of tares, or the planter of the bad seed. Like God’s trees, the forbidden treewas also beautiful Ge3:6, but not good for food.

In the beginning 6000 years ago, God had onlyONE LAW-thou shalt not eat of the forbidden tree; ‘for in that day you eat thereof, you shall surely die’ Ge2:17. However, consider these facts: Without the serpent, there would not have been any temptation, and without the forbidden tree, no sin! So here isa very important revelation: If Adam and Eve did not sin, we would not have needed a Savior; Jesus would not have to come, and if Jesus did not come, we would not know Him and about God’s great plan for us. Jesus means ‘he shall save his people from their sins’ Mt1:21.

Consider this: NO SIN,NO SAVIOUR NEEDED, AND JESUS NEED NOT COME;NO SPECIAL PLAN FOR MAN,NO HOLY BIBLE TO TELL US WHAT HAPPENED andWILL HAPPEN, and we would have NO KNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS! Without the Bible, we would not know of God’s great love for placing us here on earth, and His eternal purpose for us in Christ Jesus ourLord Ep3:11! BUTADAM AND EVE DID SIN, WE NEEDED A SAVIOUR, JESUS CAME TO SAVE US. NOW WE HAVE THE BIBLE TO TELL US WHAT HAPPENED AND WILL HAPPEN, AND NOW WE HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD AND HIS LOVE, AND HIS GREAT PLAN AND PURPOSE FOR OUR LIVES Jn3:16!

The Garden Scene/The Garden Sin

Adam and Eve may have lived in the garden for many years before they gave in to the serpent’s temptation. They were carefree, asexual having no children, and were in daily communion with God. They had no hunger, no sweat, no sorrow, no pain, no lack, no strife, no bondage, no problems, no violence, no sickness, no disease, no sin, no evil and no death! They were vegetarians who ate the fruit of all the trees except one in the Garden. They were healthy and would have lived forever. Prior to sinning, Adam and Eve were clothed with a bright glory.

The Bible said that the serpent was very subtil and wise Ge3:1, and perhaps very attractive. The serpent stood upright and could talk like a human. The serpent may have encountered Adam and Eve many times. But he laid a trap for them one day, even as he does for all of us 2Ti2:26. The devil was a murderer from the beginning and is the father of lies Jn8:44. Satan seeks to steal, kill and to destroy us Jn10:10. Adam and Eve believed the serpent’s lie about becoming as wise as gods Ge3:5, disobeyed and broke God’s only law then, became wise, knowing good and evil, and also perverted and corrupt. Their eyes were opened and they lost their glory, and realized they were naked and sinful. Ro5:12 states by Adam, sin and death entered into the world, and they were passed on to every man!

God’s Life for Our Life- To Bring Forth His Eternal Plan

God knew that Adam and Eve would sin and He would have to die for our sins.God is Omniscient and knows the end from the beginning, what will happen before they happen. The Bible tells us Jesus is ‘the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world’Re13:8,not just 2000 years ago. Ep1:4 states that ‘..God has chosen us in Jesus Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and without blame before God in love’. Why do we need to be holy and blameless if there was no sin? 2Ti1:9 states that ‘God had saved and called us with an holy calling before the world began’.

Ac2:23 declares that it was‘by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God’ that Jesus would be crucified and slain.But why did God want to pay such a great price to save us?God had planned to die for our sins. It was His choice before the world began to come down to earth to pay for our sins and to effectuate His great plan for us. Isaiah 53 prophesied of the death of Jesus, the suffering Messiah, 700 years before it happened. It is all about God’s great love and God’s grace!

Salvation is all about God’s great love for us and God’s grace toward us!So why was God willing to pay the ultimate price, His life, to die for us to save us Jn15:13? What was God’s motive? It was His prerogative and choice to die for us! Knowing that man would sin, God gave His life for our life. God, in the person of Jesus Christ, came to earth to die for us. Here are some reasonswhy Jesus came to earth: 1.To teach and preach the gospel of the kingdom of God, to heal every sickness and disease Mt4:23, 2. To save sinners 1Ti1:15, 3.To make us free Jn8:36, 4.To destroy the works of the devil 1Jn3:8, 5.To give us an abundant life Jn10:10, and eternal lifeJn3:16, 6. To taste death for every man He2:9, and to destroy death 1Co15:56. But the most important reason why Jesus came was to redeem us SO THAT GOD CAN HAVE MORE SONS AND DAUGHTERS LIKE JESUS.

Tit2:13,14 state ‘Looking for that blessed hope, andthe glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity,and purify unto himselfA PECULIAR PEOPLE,zealous of good works’. 2Co6:17,18 declare ‘.. I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be MY SONS AND DAUGHTERS, saith the Lord Almighty’. This is the SONSHIP Message- God’s eternal plan to have more sons and daughters like Jesus Christ- a people like Jesus Christ!

God’s Great Love For Us- the Gift of His GLORY

We express our love by giving to others, such as our families, friends, and those in need. Loveis conveyed through our words and actions. Even more so with God! 1Jn4:8 tells us‘God is love’. God is the personification of Love. The measure of God’s great love for us is proven by His willingness to die on the cross for us in the person of Jesus Christ Jn3:16! Another very important aspect of God’s love is His desire to share all of that He has. Ep1:18 states ‘that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the GLORY OF HIS INHERITANCE in the saints’.

But because God is also Holy and Just, He is constrained to give His GLORY only to those who are deemed worthy; only to those who are pure and holy, who have been tested and proven. Peter wrote‘..the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and GLORY at the appearing of Jesus Christ’ 1Pe1:7. Paul wrote‘For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?’ Heb12:6,7.

Paul said ‘The Spirit itself beareth witness.. that we are the children of God, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ; if so be that we SUFFER WITH HIM, that we may be also GLORIFIED together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the GLORY which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the MANIFESTATION OF THE SONS OF GOD ’ Ro8:16-19.

Before dying on the cross for us, Jesus expressly prayed the Father saying‘And the GLORY which thou gavest me I HAVE GIVEN THEM..’ Jn17:22. Paul wrote God ‘called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the GLORYOF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST’2Th2:14; ‘That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom andGLORY’ 1Th2:12. God sent His Spirit to ‘change us from GLORY to GLORY into the same image’ as Jesus Christ 2Co3:18. God’s desire is that we become like Jesus in order to give us all things. Re21:7 states‘He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son’.

In short, this is the SONSHIP message: God wants more sons and daughters like Jesus Christ to give them His GLORY and EVERYTHING that He has. But SONSHIP is only for those who know of God’s great plan, for IT WOULD REQUIRE FAITH, DESIRE, AND EFFORT ON OUR PART FOR IT TO BE FULFILLED IN US.

The SONSHIP Message- God’s Eternal Purpose in Christ Jesus

God’s plan is indeed to bring many sons to GLORY. Heb2:10-11 state ‘For it became him (God), for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto GLORY, to make the captain of their salvation (Jesus) perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifieth (Jesus) and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren’. What can be clearer than this? Jesus came to earth so that God could have more sons and daughters like Him.

By His coming, Jesus left us an example to follow. Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it’ Mt16:24-25. The apostle John wrote ‘Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us that we should be called the SONS of GOD.. when He shall appear, we shall be like Him (Jesus); for we shall see him (Jesus) as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure’ 1Jn3:1-3.

Ro8:29-30 state‘for whom God did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE OF HIS SON, that Jesus might be the firstborn of many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called.. he justified, them he also GLORIFIED’. Php3:21 states God will ‘change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body‘. Paul wrote ‘That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus’Php3:10-14. Paul’s goal and our goal should be the same- to become like Jesus Christ. This is what the SONSHIP message is all about! God wants more sons and daughters like Jesus Christso that HE CAN GIVE US ALL THAT HE HAS- EVERYTHING AND ALL THAT HE HASRe21:7.

The SONSHIP Message- The Paramount Reason Why God Created Man

In summary, the paramount reason why God created man is to have more sons and daughters like Jesus Christ- SONSHIP. It is about God’s love and desire to give His inheritance of GLORY to us! This isthe same GLORYthat Lucifer wanted to extort from God, but was cast out of heaven. Lucifer wanted this GLORY that belonged only to Jesus then, and later reserved for those God who will change to become like Jesus Christ. Lucifer’s evil desires is found in his 5 ‘I wills’: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God : I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: ‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I WILL BE LIKE THE MOST HIGH’ Is14:13-14. Lucifer was subsequently defeated in his rebellion against God, and was cast down to earth Ez28:17,18, Lk10:18.

Years later after Lucifer fell, God jumpstarted His great SONSHIP plan for man when He placed Adam and Eve in the Garden 6000 years agoand allowed Satan the serpent, and the tree of offense- the no-no tree to be there. Adam and Eve partook of the fruit of that evil tree, whereby, sin and death enter into the world. And because Adam and Eve sinned, we needed a Savior; Jesus had to come to earth to die for our sins. And because of Jesus, we now have the Bible, and we can now know of God’s great love and His plan to give us an inheritance of His GLORY. God sent Jesus Christ to be the perfect example for us to follow. Ep4:13 states ‘Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the STATURE OF THE FULNESS OF CHRIST’.

We are nearing the time of perfection when the Rapture will soon occur. 1Jn3:2 states‘..when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is’. It is the Holy Spirit’s job to conform us to the image of Jesus Christ. 2Co3:18 states we ‘are changed into the same image from GLORY to GLORY, even as by the Spirit of the Lord’. Ro8:14 tells us‘As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are theSONS of GOD’. Ro8:19 states‘For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the SONS of GOD’. This is ‘the eternal purpose which God purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord’ Ep3:11, and the paramount reason why God created us- for SONSHIP, to have more sons and daughters like Jesus Christin orderto share all His riches and GLORY with us for all ETERNITY. And all this began in the Garden of Eden! Amen!